Q&A: Waipahu senior safety Deacon Kapea

Former Damien athlete Deacon Kapea transferred to Waipahu for his junior season and has been a part of back-to-back OIA championship teams. Photo by Dennis Oda/Star-Advertiser.

It takes all 11 players to make a defensive unit this strong.

Waipahu does that, and there’s leadership to sustain the kind of success the Marauders have achieved. They have allowed nine points in two playoff games en route to the OIA Division I football championship just one year after taking the D-II title. Deacon Kapea, who grew up playing sports at Village Park, returned from Damien during his sophomore year for a chance to play at the alma mater of his mother and family.

Kapea chatted with Hawaii Prep World on Thursday afternoon and was featured in today’s Honolulu Star-Advertiser, which you can read by clicking here.

Waipahu’s Deacon Kapea helped the Marauders give up nine points in two OIA Division I playoff games. Photo by Andrew Lee/Special to the Star-Advertiser.

Deacon Kapea
Waipahu football
Senior

Athlete: Bo Jackson.

Team: Green Bay Packers.

Part-time job: Eggs N’ Things (Ko Olina).

Food at home: Sausage, eggs, rice.

Food eating out: Baby-back ribs at Outback Steakhouse.

Hobby: Any beach with waves, working on trucks.

Movie: Goonies. I’ve seen it about 100 times. The best scene is the truffle shuffle.

TV show: SpongeBob Squarepants.

Video game: Fortnite.

Music artist: Tupac. My mom’s favorite song is Ambitions az a Ridah.

Teacher: Miss Kuroda of Kaleiopuu Elementary School. She told me when I was young and not even double digits in age yet that she would watch me play football on TV.

GPA: 2.85.

Class: Science. My biology class (at Damien). We did a lot of experiments.

My mom wanted me to graduate from her alma mater. They didn’t want me to come here (to Waipahu) at first. They didn’t want me to do bad things.

What mom says: “Leave the girls alone.” She knows I have goals to take care of. Football and school.

What your coaches say: “Always work for what you want.” (Aaron Cox, defensive backs coach)

How does football affect your life: “No time to do anything, but train. Maybe a week off, not that long, a day or two. I like to do things individually.”

What middle and elementary schools did you attend: I was at Damien from sixth grade until I left in the third quarter of 10th grade. I went to Kaleiopuu Elementary.

What youth teams did you play for? Village Park Warriors and Waipio Panthers. I played baseball for Ewa Beach. I played pitcher and center field. I stopped in freshman year. Our family sports are baseball and football. My mom’s brother played in MLB, Daniel Kapea Jr.

Have you travelled for football: I went to Utah and Las Vegas. I went up for HAIA (Hawaii Athletes in Action). We took a group up there for camps and games. The All-Poly camp was in Utah. Learned a lot of skills from college coaches.

Bucket list destinations: Bahamas, Lambeau Field (Wisconsin), Fiji.

What’s the history of your name? I’m named after Deacon Jones, the D-end for the Rams. My dad (Chris) chose the name. I watched his highlight tape.

COMMENTS

HI HS FAN
November 6, 2018 12:30 pm

Awesome. Keep working & balling. The college that gets you will be more than surprised in the athlete they’ll get. Yes, I remember your uncle, Danny Kapea. Led Waipahu to OIA Championship and States. Also had a good career at UH.

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